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CRANE PROVIDES KEY TO QUAYSIDE FISH HANDLING
When Sutton Harbour Fisheries needed an alternative method
of handling fish boxes from boats to the quayside while its
normal facilities were out of action due to scheduled harbour
maintenance in 2007 it found a vehicle mounted crane supplied
by Penny Hydraulics offered an ideal solution. Installing a
Penny Hydraulics Swing Lift crane on a new pickup truck provided
a highly effective, flexible and mobile solution to the company’s
requirements.
“We are very pleased with the crane and it’s been
exactly what we needed,” says Pete Bromley, Harbourmaster
and Fisheries Manager of Sutton Harbour Company. “Penny
Hydraulics couldn’t have been more helpful. They listened
to what we had to say and came up with a solution.”
Based in Plymouth, Sutton Harbour Fisheries is one of the most
successful fish markets in the UK, trading millions of pounds
worth of fish each year caught locally or landed at other ports
throughout the country. The harbour is accessed through a lock
gate which can be closed to create a haven for local boats to
moor and land their catch. Sutton Harbour Fisheries normally
offloads fish boxes using specialist handling equipment permanently
installed at the quayside. The lock gate was scheduled for renewal
during the second half of 2007 and this meant the boats would
need to find an alternative position to land their catch while
the work was being carried out because they would not have access
to the harbour.
Sutton Harbour Fisheries recognised that it needed to find an
effective temporary method for landing the local catch safely
and efficiently so that the fishermen’s livelihoods would
not be affected. A permanent location was considered impractical
and instead the company came up with the idea of a crane mounted
on a vehicle that could drive to any position along the quayside
and lift fish boxes from the boats and take them to the market.
Pete Bromley made contact with Penny Hydraulics which proposed
one of its Swing Lift cranes with an integrated electric winch
for handling loads below quay level. The crane was installed
to the manufacturer’s specification at the rear of a new
Iveco extended flatbed pickup by a local specialist marine engineer.
“We ordered the crane and it was delivered to us ready
for fitting,” says Pete Bromley. “The engineers fitted
and tested it for us. It was one of the easiest jobs I’ve
ever put together.”
When a boat arrives at the quay the vehicle drives alongside
and uses the crane to lift up to three fish boxes weighing as
much as 200kg in total from the boat to the platform. The simple
design of the crane allows the boom to be extended and positioned
by hand for simplicity and reliability. Depending on the size
of boat and tide the crane may need to lift the boxes from up
to 8m (25ft) below quay level. This is achieved using the crane’s
integrated electric winch to lift and lower the boxes. As soon
as items are clear of the quayside the boom is rotated by hand
so that loads can be lowered onto the vehicle. When the boxes
have been offloaded the pickup takes the catch to market before
returning to the quay for more fish. Reliability is vital because
fish must reach market as soon as possible after arriving at
the quayside.
Penny Hydraulics provided specialist training to Sutton Harbour
Fisheries employees so that they understood how to use the crane
safely and efficiently. The company supplied a spare wire rope
to ensure that fish handling could continue if there was any
damage to the original. Maintenance support is provided by the
company’s local service engineer on a call-out basis. The
simple design and robust construction of the Swing Lift crane
ensures routine checks and maintenance tasks can be completed
quickly and easily. Sutton Harbour Fisheries has already found
a number of other jobs it can do with the crane and has now
decided to keep the vehicle once the harbour reopens even though
it had originally decided that the truck and crane would only
be needed while the lock gates were out of action.
“Now we have the crane we are finding all kinds of jobs
for it around the harbour,” says Pete Bromley.
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